One Day More
by KateBB7
Summary: Bad things are bound to happen in the Emergency Department at Gaffney. But one day stands out and will always be remembered. All characters, including characters from CPD and CFD. Independent. Now completed.
1. Chapter 1

_Next week is season finale, so I though I would drabble in some stories until the next season. Here's a preview. I hope you like it._

"Incoming!" Maggie shouted just before the doors swooshed open.

"Status?" Dr. Halstead asked and as the paramedics from 51 wheeled in the gurney he followed by the side

"25-year-old male, fell of a two-story ladder, cracked skull, possibly a number of fractured bones, unresponsive, HR and BP are steady," Sylvie Brett replied loudly.

"Trauma Two," Maggie cut in, and the people around the gurney directed the course. Dr. Choi and April joined the team as they lined up the gurney to the bed in the bay.

"Move on my count," Halstead ordered and gave them all a second to get ready. "One, two, three," he continued and in one fluent movement the patient had been transferred and the paramedics moved out of the way with the gurney. Sylvie and Jimmy stopped at the counter, to have a brief chat with Maggie when the doors slid open again.

"I need some help over here," Officer Roman yelled from the outside. A mix of red and blue lights flickered outside the glass.

"Reese, you're with me," Dr. Rhodes bellowed when he came out of nowhere, sprinting towards the door, Sarah quickly left what she was doing and ran after him. Brett and Borelli followed with the gurney, knowing that Rhodes would call for one in a second or two.

"We don't know what happened," a younger, unknown, officer cried out when they arrived at the cruiser that had been carelessly parked in a crazy angle to the hospitals doors. The rear door in the passenger side was open and Rhodes, spotting the patient, climbed in to get a better look. The patient was a big man, wearing an orange jumpsuit and his wrists and ankles had been chained together. All of his body was jerking and thrashing around in the back of the car, as much as the restraints let him.

"What do we know?" Rhodes asked as he checked over the man, trying to avoid the flailing elbows.

"Rob Caine, 29, two counts of armed robbery and grand theft. We're transporting him to lockup," Sean Roman responded from behind.

"Any medical history?" Sarah asked Roman who denied it with a simple movement.

"Nothing in his file," he said, explanatory. "One minute he was fine, the next his eyes rolled up and he started trashing around. We were only half a block away, so it seemed like the smart move." After the preliminary examination Rhodes cast a glance to the sidewalk.

"Roman, Borelli, I need you to pull him out by his feet. We need to get him inside," he said and looked around in the confined area before he heaved the inmate's legs up on the seat, available for the two men he had just addressed. Shortly after the man way lying on the gurney and they hastily rolled him inside through the doors. Maggie had kept an eye on them and made sure the door was open.

"Treatment Three," she yelled and they turned the gurney.

"On my count… one, two, three," Rhodes ordered and in one fluent motion the patient was transferred. Sylvie and Jimmy cleared the area to give the people some room. Half a dozen people in scrubs were surrounding him now, Roman and the new officer was standing nearby. "Roman, I need to get these chains off," Rhodes stated a second before the body went totally limp. "I need a crash cart in here," he yelled when he checked for a pulse and pushed the blue button on the wall. Roman had moved closer to take the chains off, but it was clearly evident in his eyes, that he didn't like it. Sarah moved efficiently to place the pads while Rhodes grabbed the paddles. "Charge to one fifty," he barked and the machine beeped. "Clear," he announced and they all lifted their hands. The body flinched upwards and came back down to relax.

"Rhythm is back, BP still a little bit high," a nurse mentioned. Rhodes breathed out, Roman rubbed his face and the newbie in the corner looked horrified. Rhodes ordered the following treatment and could finally take a break. This morning had been terribly busy and he imagined all of his colleagues being just as tired as him.

The new officer, Geoffrey Montoya, was only four months out of the academy and now he had been posted in the corner of the room, keeping an eye on the prisoner. Not that it was a hard job, considering he had been stabilized and unconscious all the time, but none the less his eyes hadn't moved from the motionless body before him. That was until the man's finger twitched. The curtain and the glass door had been pulled shut, as to not disturb the passing people. Seeing a man in a hospital bed, cuffed and with a police officer standing in the corner was quite unnerving for some of the other people seeking treatment. So, when Rob Caine moved his mouth, the younger officer of course moved closer. He was to the point of leaning across the bed when the convict's eyes opened quickly and he's free hand moved to the officer's exposed neck. The officer was caught completely off guard and his body went limp in a matter of seconds, sprawled across the bed and Caine's legs. He had pinched of the arteries in the officer's neck and blocked the blood from flowing to his brain. Surprisingly effective, the convict had learned through his career as a regular bad-ass. He dug out the key to the handcuffs and shook them of a second later. He jumped of the bed and thought of his next move. His eyes came to rest on the unconscious officer in front of him, or rather the gun mounted at his hip.

Reese had been buried knee deep in paperwork the entire afternoon and was now headed to the main desk, so Maggie could approve it. She was just about to pass the door to the room with the prisoner in, when she saw it open and an officer walk out. She did a double take when she noticed the uniform was either too small or the officer had inexplicably grown.

"Hey!" someone yelled from across the room. Then Sarah saw his face and he was staring right at her. All of a sudden he pulled the gun form the holster and pointed it straight at her chest. Sarah froze instantly, paralyzed with fear, like a deer caught in the headlights. "Drop the gun, Caine!" the voice shouted, now sounding like Roman. For a second it seemed like time stood still. Then people started screaming all around her, patients and family started running out the doors. Medical personal glued to their spots. April was talking with Maggie and Natalie behind the counter. Choi and Halstead came out of the break room, shoulders tense and closed fists. Sarah hugged the stack of papers and folders close to her chest. Caine covered the distance of six feet in two strides and grabbed her arm above the elbow before he yanked her towards him. All the papers fell to the floor and drifted. He walked back, closer to the wall, limiting his exposure, using her body as a shield and jammed the gun in her ribs.

"Nobody move!" Caine shouted when Roman advanced to get closer. Sarah flinched when the gun was jammed even harder into her ribs. Caine had a tight grip on her shoulders and Sarah was trying to pull the strong arm down and away from her, her pulse high. "You, lock the doors. Nobody's coming in, nobody's leaving!" he shouted to a nurse close to the door. She ran across the room and locked the other doors as well. Sirens grew louder and Caine angled himself to the door, keeping Sarah between him and the rest. She wanted to cry and curl up into a ball, but no tears came out. "Officer, please throw your weapon over here or this pretty, little doll will know what a bullet in the brain feels like," he said calmly. Roman didn't move at first, but when the gun was raised and jammed into Reese's ear he held his hands up in defeat.

"Okay, okay, okay… take it easy, don't hurt her, she's innocent," Roman replied. Blue, flashing lights came across the room, when a fleet of patrol cars came to a halt outside the main entrance. Roman slid his weapon across the floor and raised his hands in the air.

"Get over to the door and face the window with your hands in the air," Caine ordered Roman when he collected the weapon and stuffed it in the holster. He looked over to the two doctors. "You too, pretty boy…" he commandeered when he looked at Halstead. Slowly the two of them moved towards the glass door and took up stance, looking out on the chaos in front of them. They blocked the line of sight effectively with their big frames. "Everybody else will calmly walk over there," he said, looking at the rest of the scared personal and pointing to the middle of the floor. "… and lie down nicely on your stomachs. If I see any of you using a phone, I will put a bullet in her," he said, surprisingly calm, Sarah flinched again when the gun was jabbed in her side again. "If any of you make any kind of noise, I will put a bullet in her," he continued. "If you as much as look at each other, I will put a bullet in her," he emphasized and looked around. "MOVE!" he shouted and Sarah shied away from the loud yell. She was concentrating on her breathing, as she did not want to panic, but she couldn't quite keep it down. The people in front of her moved to the appointed area and Caine followed the crowd, making sure that Sarah stayed between him and them. Choi, Maggie, Natalie and April lay down on the floor, silent but close to each other. All of them looked at Sarah through the corner of their eyes. The ED fell completely silent and only the sirens outside were hearable. Roman's radio crackled from the door and Caine's eyes grew wide. "Pretty boy, get the radio off him," Caine ordered. Halstead glanced over his shoulders, quickly looked straight ahead again and then reached over to unclip the radio from the shoulder and then from the belt. No one talked, no one dared. "Throw it over here," Caine demanded.

Dr. Rhodes had been watching the scene unfold in front of him. Thankfully, Caine didn't know he was in there with them. In fact he had been hiding the whole time in the next room over. Now, he was silently advancing, getting closer to the convict. He saw Halstead catch a glimpse of him before he worked the radio off of Roman. From his angle he could see him mouthing something to Roman and he saw them both tense up. Choi and Maggie had a clear view of him advancing from behind Caine and Maggie could practically feel the doctor's muscles tense up next to her. All kinds of sceneries ran through her mind. Once again time stood still. Halstead threw the radio so it landed on the floor right in front of Sarah and when Caine bended awkwardly down to grab it, Rhodes charged from behind. He ripped the man's arm away, backwards, so the gun pointed at the floor. The surprise caused Caine to let go of Sarah and she was propelled into the open floor, stumbling over the flailed out bodies on the ground. With the gun still pointing down Rhodes blocked an incoming fist with his shoulder, while struggling to keep the muzzle of the gun away from the people. Choi jumped to his feet, Halstead and Roman spun around, all of them aiming to take down the convict. A shot was fired. The gun barked angrily once and all of them came to a halt.

 _Please let me know how I did. I might not be the best to the medical talk, but that is like - really hard! I hope you'll return for the next chapter. /K._


	2. Chapter 2

_I hope you liked the first chapter. Here is another treat for you! Enjoy._

 _A shot was fired. The gun barked angrily once and all of them came to a halt._ People screamed. Caine backed up, everybody's eyes rested on the doctor in front of him. The radio crackled furiously from the floor. Rhodes stared straight ahead until he lowered his eyes and saw the blood on his shirt. Dazed, he tried to press his hand on it to stop the bleeding, not yet feeling the pain of the bullet. It had entered below his chest, in his left side, in the ribs, in an upward angle.

"Rhodes!" Halstead shouted when his knees buckled and he dropped to the floor like a sack of potatoes.

"Do not move!" Caine shouted and raised the gun again, this time to point it straight at Halstead, Roman and Choi alternately. None of them moved.

"You have to let us help him," Choi pleaded, showing his palms, unthreatening. Caine was silent for a while, contemplating the pros and cons. "Please, we don't want him to die," Choi continued. Rhodes, at that point, was gasping for air and looking at the ceiling with panic in his eyes.

"Okay, but only you," Caine mumbled and waved the gun at Choi who hesitantly moved towards his injured coworker and friend. He fell to his knees next to him, pressing a hand to the wound.

"Come on, Rhodes, not like this," he mumbled under his breath when he reached out for a pack of gauze from the nearby trolley. Rhodes gasped and cried out in pain which was now hitting him hard when Choi pressed the white fabric into the wound. His irregular breathing alarmed Choi. He quickly felt for an exit wound on his back, not finding one he turned to Caine. "His lung collapsed and he's losing a lot of blood. The bullet is still inside and he needs surgery, right now!" he yelled and couldn't do much. Rhodes's breathing became more ragged.

"Then operate on him," Caine shouted back with the gun trailing from Roman and Halstead to Choi, who held up a hand in defense.

"You just shot the only certified trauma surgeon in here, it isn't going to be easy and I need help," Choi replied carefully. Technically he knew how to do it, but he wasn't about to risk his friend's life.

"From who?" Caine asked, clearly agitated by the situation's development.

"Halstead and April will do," he responded coldly. He wasn't about to drag Natalie into this, not when she had Owen to go home to. And Reese had been through enough. She was sitting on the floor, knees under her chin, leaning against the counter halfway behind the protective Maggie and next to Natalie. It didn't look like Maggie would let them go, either way. Choi looked at Caine, pleading with his eyes.

"Halstead and April it is," Caine confirmed and the two of them carefully moved closer with the gun following them close. "You move back to the window," he said to Roman and grabbed the other gun, Roman's gun, from the holster to point it at him. He swung the gun to Maggie. "You too, sunshine," he ordered and Maggie got to her feet and moved to the door, where she took up the same stance as Roman, resting her hands on the door frame. Natalie instantly moved forward to shield Reese, knowing how delicate and fragile the med student could be. Rhodes was trying to cough, but all the sounds came out, just as a rattle between his rapid breathing. April had kneeled next to his head, Halstead next to her. Choi was on the other side, keeping a pressure on the wound with the now soaking gauze. Halstead listened for sounds in the chest and April checked Rhodes's face, his pupil's response, pulse and coloring of the lips.

"He's crackling in the left lung, we have to get the pocket of air out," he enlightened the people around him when he located it.

"I'll get you a syringe," April said uptight and got to her feet. She kept an eye on Caine, as she ducked over to another trolley, which she brought back with her. She handed Choi another pad and he threw the soaked one away. Then she handed Halstead a needle, before she cut open the blood soaked shirt. A firm chest was exposed with toned muscles and a gaping hole in the left side, still leaking blood. Halstead counted the ribs on the side and gently pushed the needle into the skin, between to ribs in Rhodes's side. After just a few seconds his breathing became less shallow and he closed his eyes. Halstead let out a sigh of relief as he checked the chest sounds again. Much better, he determined.

"April, grab the x-ray, we have to know where the bullet is lodged and how much damage it has done," Choi asked and again she ran away for a moment. Halstead moved too, only to roll out a bed from the nearby room.

"Help me get him up," he asked Choi who grabbed Rhodes by the knees. Halstead lifted him by the shoulders and together they heaved him onto the bed. Again Choi changed the padding on the wound, grimacing of the blood.

"He's losing too much blood," Choi complained bitterly when Halstead came back out with a heart monitor. At the same time as April came back they heard the steady, but fast beeping from the machine.

"We need to get him into surgery," Halstead said when he turned around to Caine.

"No can do, pretty boy, you'll do it right here, where I can see you," Caine smirked.

"Listen, asshole, if he dies, it's on you. If you won't let him go, then get a proper surgeon in here," Halstead almost yelled, the ginger personality glowing in his eyes. As if on cue, a phone on the desk started ringing in the engrossing silence. Caine was at the wall, left arm stretched out and pointing the gun at Roman by the door. His right arm was pointing the gun at the three working people in front of him. They all looked the phone, as it kept ringing. He locked his eyes with Reese.

"Doll face, will you please answer the phone?" he asked, surprisingly polite. When Reese hesitated for a moment his left hand travelled to point the gun at her, she instantly got to her feet and moved around the counter.

Outside, on the parking lot, a lot of police had assembled in and around a tent filled with computers and all kinds of equipment.

"Get me a phone line in there, ASAP!" Voight shouted to one the technicians in the corner. Ruzek and Atwater pushed past the assembly of people.

"All doors have been secured from the inside. No way to get in or out," Ruzek reported. Shortly after Jay Halstead walked in, pushed past the same people and looking like he was about to rip someone's throat out.

"No possible locations for a long gun, too much collateral damage. Roman and Maggie are blocking the door, we can hardly get a glimpse inside," he relayed and ran a hand through his hair. Minutes earlier, his brother had been in standing in front of the door, then he had moved and a shot was fired. Since then Maggie had taken over his spot in the door and Jay feared the worst.

"Hank, I'm telling you, there are only the doors to get through. It's not like the ED was built to this kind of scenario," Sharon Goodwin stated. The rest of the hospital had been evacuated, as much as possible, and her phone was constantly ringing and buzzing. "If you get a phone line there, I would like Dr. Charles to talk with them," she mentioned before she had to answer a call. Hank fell into silence and sighed.

"Erin, find Dr. Charles and bring him in here," he ordered when Antonio and Olinsky came in. She hastily pushed through the crowd in the tent and was lost to sight. "What do we know?" he asked when Antonio handed him a folder. Presumably the one, that was found in Roman's car.

"Rob Caine, 29, armed robbery and grand theft, en route to CCF," Antonio replied and looked at his boss when he rifled through the file on the convict.

"Funny thing is, he has no medical history, so why did they come here?" Olinsky asked from behind Antonio. Erin popped back up with Dr. Charles in tow.

"Jay, get ESU up to speed and take charge, as soon as you find a possible entry, I want to know. I want you two, to dig up any kind of relations to this guy, I want to know how he thinks. Go through the criminal files and the transcripts from the courthouse," he commandeered in his hoarse voice to Antonio and Olinsky. Normally they had their regular partner's, but today they all made an exception.

"Sir, press the green button when you are ready to make a call. It's connected straight to the main desk in the ED," a technician peeped when he handed him a wireless phone.

"Hello," she replied with a shaking voice, almost stammering.

" _Ms. Reese,_ " the familiar voice of Dr. Charles sounded and Reese felt her heartbeat slow down. " _Is everything all right in there, we heard a shot?_ " Charles asked with clear concern in his voice.

"Yes… no… Dr. Rhodes…" she started but was cut short.

"Who is it? What do they want? Put them on speaker!" Caine said. She nodded and lifted the earpiece again.

" _It's okay, ms. Reese, just put the speaker on,_ " Charles said. He had obviously heard the outburst from Caine. Sarah mumbled and pressed a button on the phone before she left it on the counter. " _Mr. Caine, I'm Dr. Charles. How are you doing in there? We're all a bit concerned because we heard a shot,_ " he spoke quietly and everyday-like. Caine looked to be more upset.

" _What the hell do you want?_ " a man shouted from a distance, but the question was obviously directed to Dr. Charles. Everybody around him was looking at the phone in complete silence.

"Easy, buddy, I just want to know if everybody is all right? Can I speak to Ms. Reese again?" he asked, trying to not agitate the man any further. They all heard a faint mumbling, a distant conversation.

" _Dr. Charles,_ " Reese spoke clearly but the nervousness in her voice was noticeable.

"Tell me, ms. Reese, is anybody hurt?" he asked once more, he could see the fourth year medical student in front of him, scared and shaking, but keeping her face. That was how she was.

" _Uhm… Dr. Rhodes was shot, -_ " Ms. Goodwin gasped silent, horrified. " _\- he's bleeding pretty bad and his left lung collapsed. Dr. Choi and Dr. Halstead are working on stabilizing him right now, but he needs surgery. Everybody else is okay for now,_ " she dispatched. Another murmur in the distance, this one containing the worked up voices of Dr. Halstead and Dr. Choi. Feet shuffled, the phone was picked up. The voice of Dr. Choi filled the room.

" _Dr. Charles, the bullet is still inside him and he needs surgery. I mean, we can keep packing the wound, but eventually Dr. Rhodes will bleed out. None of us can leave, but mr. Caine has accepted that a surgeon will come in here and do the job._ " Dr. Charles looked at Hank, who had crossed his arms, and Ms. Goodwin next to him. She had still a hand clamped over her mouth. He shielded the microphone to duffle the sound.

"Who is on call today?" he asked her and she blinked.

"Dr. Samantha Zanetti," she replied in a hollow voice.

"Get her up here and let's have her prepared," Hank said to Erin and once again she hurried out of the tent.

"Dr. Choi…" Charles started but stopped again when he heard the sudden commotion on the line.

" _April, get the crash cart… He's in v-fib… Charging… Clear… Again…_ "

 _What do you think? Please, leave a review if you please - it is very much inspiring me to write more._ _/K._


	3. Chapter 3

I apologize for the long wait - lots of things happening right now (turned 21 a couple of days ago, got my horse back, rewatching series, quit my job, heat wave or something familiar). Was it too evil to leave you with a cliffhanger, like that, or did you survive? Read and enjoy. Leave a review if you please.

" _April, get the crash cart… He's in v-fib… Charging… Clear… Again…_ " Halstead was leaning on the bed while he continued to give Rhodes the chest compressions rhythmically. All he could hear was the steady tone of the heart monitor and the sound of his blood rushing in his ears. He could feel his hands getting clammy and the anger in the pit of his stomach grew with each compression.

"Clear," Choi warned and Halstead and April lifted their hands at once. The power surged through Rhodes's body for less than a second. They all waited for the beeping to return on the monitor but nothing happened. Halstead began the compressions again, everybody's eyes resting on him and Rhodes. "Clear," Choi warned again and shocked the body before him. All personal breathed out relieved when a single beep sounded from the monitor. It was followed by a steady, but weak rhythm.

"We can't keep this up," Halstead said when he turned to Caine, ignoring the gun trained at his chest when he moved closer. "He needs surgery and I don't care about what the hell you want," he said in a low voice, barely audible to the people around him, his eyes glaring at the disheveled man.

" _Hello?_ " Charles's voice sounded distant in the phone next to Reese on the counter. Caine backed up a step and looked at her with something in his eyes.

"Answer it," he mumbled and Reese swallowed.

"Dr. Charles… we are still here," she said carefully.

" _Is everybody all right?_ " he asked, concern in his voice.

"At the moment… we are all alive," she said, doing her best to keep her voice normal and the tears in her eyes back.

" _Listen, Dr. Zanetti is ready to perform the surgery. She'll be at the front door in a minute, okay?_ " Charles said and sounded like it was just another day. He had that ability to calm everybody down with nothing but the sound of his voice.

"Okay," Reese responded, keeping her eyes at Caine.

" _Ms. Reese, listen to me… you'll be fine, all right. Just do what mr. Caine says. Your friends will take care of you, just like you're taking care of Dr. Rhodes,_ " Charles continued and Reese couldn't help the tiny smile from forming on her lips.

"She's here," Roman called from his place in front of the glass doors.

"Hang up the phone, doll face," Caine ordered and moved closer to the door so he could see through. Reese disconnected the call reluctantly. "Let her in, sunshine," he yelled at Maggie and she hesitantly unlocked the door. Zanetti walked inside slowly, her eyes locking with Maggie and then rested on Rhodes for a spell before moving on to look at Caine with disgust. Maggie locked the door again. Zanetti was in her usual mint green scrubs and her hair was handing down by her shoulders.

"Status?" she asked when she moved slowly towards the bed where Halstead had joined Choi and April again.

"Stop," Caine said, eyeing her up and down. She noticed the look and she sighed.

"Listen, I don't know why you are doing this, but if you look at me like that again, I swear I will knock your teeth out," she warned him but he only smiled.

"Work your magic, doc. If you try pulling any kind of number on me, I won't hesitate to shoot another of your coworkers," he laughed and waved her over to Rhodes. She grabbed a pair of gloves and moved to the bed in the middle of the hallway.

"How is he?" she asked, more strained than anything. She and Rhodes had been dating for a while and she was fairly certain that nobody knew about the relationship. They had been good at keeping the professional distance at work. Now, she was looking at a man she hardly knew. Pale, bloody, vulnerable.

"Heart stopped and he's losing a lot of blood, it's still oozing. The bullet nicked the lung and caused a collapse. It travelled upwards and is now wedged in the sixth rib, close to the vertebrae," Choi reported and let out a breath he realized he had been holding back.

"Can we go in from the entrance wound?" Zanetti asked when April handed her the x-ray results, so she could look them over.

"Could be causing more damage than good, when it travelled so far," Halstead growled.

"Great," Zanetti muttered under her breath. "Let's get him to the OR," she said with a stressed out sigh.

"You are not going anywhere, doc," Caine started and Zanetti spun around with disgust, anxiety and rage in her eyes.

"We need a sterile environment to perform the surgery," she almost yelled at him with the black and white images in her hand. Roman and Maggie glanced over their shoulders, Natalie was sitting on the floor and leaning against the counter. Reese was still standing by the phone behind the counter. Choi and Halstead looked up, and like April they hadn't moved.

"Too bad, you'll have to do it here," Caine said with an arrogant grin. Zanetti was about to let out another burst of rage but was quiet when the gun was trained at her. Caine tilted his head and looked at her awaiting her decision. Zanetti turned back to the bed and sighed, took in the sigh before her.

"I need two units of O neg, gauze, a suture-kit, scalpel and retractor," she ordered and April ran off to get the supplies. "Dr. Halstead, get an IV going and knock him out," she sighed. "How are we looking on the bleeding?" she asked Choi who was still keeping the pressure on the wound.

"It's not coagulating, just keeps seeping," he replied and Zanetti lifted the edge of the gauze carefully. Blood trickled down Rhodes's waist and made a pool on the bed before dripping onto the floor.

"We need to find the source and stop it, before we worry about the bullet," she decided when April returned. Caine was standing easily with his back against the wall. The gun in his left hand was loosely pointing towards Roman and Maggie at the door, covering their backs. With a slight move to the right he saw also covering Natalie, Reese and the remaining personal in the middle. The gun in his right hand was pointing straight on the group of doctors to his right.

"Where is the bleeding coming from?" Choi asked wearily, head to head with Zanetti, both of them working to stop the bleeding. Zanetti wondered for a second and pressed the gauze into the open wound.

"I don't… ah, here it is," she said, suddenly more optimistic, when she pulled the gauze away. "Left lobe of the liver… by the looks of it, it must have been grazed by the bullet…" she said distantly and let more gauze soak in the blood. "We need more blood," she commented when she saw how quickly the blood filled the wound.

"I'll get it," April mumbled and ran off. Halstead occasionally glanced at Caine, thinking up strategies while Choi helped out Zanetti.

"You know, before you took hostages and shot a man, you could have got away clean. But now it's a whole new story," Halstead began.

"Shut up, pretty boy," Caine growled and raised the gun again to enhance his command.

"Listen, man… what do you want? I can help you get it… my brother is a cop and I'm sure money won't be a problem," he continued, unfazed by the wavering gun, and glanced at his sedated friend. At least he appeared to be unfazed. On the inside he was panicking and he had a tendency to talk when he was panicking. He wasn't sure what Rhodes would think about Halstead mentioning his money, but right now he didn't care. Caine looked at him for a second, thinking.

"What's your name?" he asked quietly and Halstead gathered his bearings after a moment of surprise.

"Halstead… Will Halstead," he replied and glanced at Choi and Zanetti for a second. They were still working on stopping the blood, murmuring to each other.

"And your friends?" Caine asked, looking around on the assembled crowd on the floor. Halstead hesitated for another moment and then started from on end.

"Nurse Sexton, Doctors Choi and Zanetti, fourth year med student Reese, Dr. Manning, Nurse Lockwood and Officer Roman," he replied, Caine nodded, clearly thinking.

"Doll face… Reese, call them back on speaker," he said calmly and she hit redial on the phone. After a single ring the phone clicked.

" _Hello?_ " Charles said, masquerading the panic from the outside with his calm voice.

"I want to talk with Halstead, the cop," Caine yelled, making sure that they could hear him.

" _All right, he'll be here soon, mr. Caine. How is Dr. Rhodes?_ " he asked curiously.

"He is… progressing, I think," Caine replied thoughtfully when he looked at Rhodes. Zanetti sent him a glare that could kill if possible.

" _Aha… you don't sound like you have a lot of regrets,_ " Charles stated, waiting for a response.

"No? What do I sound like, then? Forget it… just get Halstead on the line," he said when he quickly moved over to the counter, to Reese trapped between him and the desk. She shied back when he leaned over and disconnected the call. He placed the weapon from his right hand at the small of his back and lifted the hand to her face, almost touching her chin with a single finger. Reese closed her eyes tight, leaned further back and breathed fast.

"Step away from her," Natalie said out loud, making sure to speak clearly and determined. Caine stopped and looked over his shoulder. Then he turned to Natalie.

"Hey, we don't want any trouble…" Halstead spoke out loud, getting protective when he closed the distance to Natalie who was now on her feet. "The police will get you what you want if you cooperate… lay a hand on any one of them, I'll make sure you won't get anything," he continued, trying to turn Caine away from Natalie. She looked feisty, if anything and Reese's eyes moved from Halstead to Caine and back again. Caine smiled self-satisfied, like he had his own little secret and nodded impressive when he turned to Halstead.

"I see what you are doing, pretty boy, and I will make sure they do exactly what I want them to do," he snickered and walked over to the door, behind Roman. He pressed the gun to the back of the neck and Roman held his breath and clenched his teeth while Caine unhooked the cuffs from Roman's duty belt. He held them over the shoulder and dangled them in front of his face. "Cuff yourself behind your back," he mumbled and Roman obediently took the cuffs and moved slowly to fasten them on his wrists. When finished, Caine moved closer to his ear and whispered, so only Roman could hear it. "If you do anything, I will put a bullet in miss sunshine next to you," he smiled and pushed him forward with the gun, until his forehead rested on the glass door. Then he moved a step to his right, grabbed the cuffs from Montoya's belt and clicked them onto Maggie's wrists, one at a time, behind her back. She huffed when they dug into her wrists. The phone yelled for attention again and Caine nodded to Reese, who pressed the green button and put the call on speaker.

" _Caine?_ " a voice asked, a voice most of the people in the room recognized as Jay Halstead, Will's brother.

"Halstead?" Caine asked back and looked to the Halstead in the room to verify the voice. "So… your brother tells me, you are a cop," Caine stated with a smile.

Leave a review? I hope you liked it. /K.


	4. Chapter 4

_Another chapter for you :) Sorry to say - there's only one chapter left, after this one. But fear not! I will return with many more stories to share. Have fun._

 _"_ _So… your brother tells me, you are a cop," Caine stated with a smile._ Jay Halstead was surrounded by part of the intelligence unit, Mrs. Goodwin and Dr. Charles. He was leaning over the table and glanced at Voight for a second.

"Well, he's wrong. I'm a Detective with the CPD's Intelligence Unit. There is a big difference, one of them being that I have a lot more pull, than the regular street cop," Jay explained. There was a few seconds of silence on the line.

" _Sure, you do,_ " Caine laughed from his side.

"What do you want, Caine?" Jay asked, masquerading his impatience and worry with a curious voice.

" _How about two million in cash, unmarked, and a clean getaway? You think you have enough pull to get me that in three hours?_ " Caine replied and Jay frowned. Hank shook his head at him and made a winding motion with his hand, demanding more time.

"That's a lot of money in three hours, Caine, I need more time," Jay mentioned while rubbing his neck. Hank turned to Erin and they spoke together quietly for a few seconds before she started making calls.

" _Figure it out, Halstead,_ " came the response.

"At least, let some of the people go. Call it a sign of good faith," Jay said, hoping for a positive outcome. Again there were a few moments of silence before they all heard a shuffling sound and some unidentifiable voices. A radio crackled from Hank's belt, Ruzek's voice sounded.

" _We have movement in the door… hold your fire… Dr. Manning is coming out… doors are closing… Manning is secure,_ " a wave of relief came over all of them and Hank lifted the radio to reply.

"Ruzek, have Atwater bring her in here," he said in his hoarse voice while Mrs. Goodwin and Erin headed out of the tent.

" _Got it,_ " came the short reply and the radio crackled again.

" _Happy now, Halstead?_ " Caine asked sarcastically and the call was disconnected before Jay could answer. Atwater walked in with Natalie, Erin, Mrs. Goodwin in tow.

"Natalie, are you all right?" Jay asked when he pushed past the table and pulled the doctor into his arms for a second.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," she insisted when he stepped back again.

"What can you tell us about the situation, Dr. Manning?" Hank asked over Jay's shoulder and she ran a hand through her hair.

"Roman brought him in this morning with a seizure. Everything was quiet until he stepped out from the room in a police uniform and threatened to shoot Reese. All patients and family made it outside with part of the personnel..." she was quiet for a second, swallowing a lump in her throat. Charles had appeared next to her and put a calming hand on her arm. Erin placed a chair behind her and she sat down, uneasily. "He put Sean and Will in front of the door and then Rhodes jumped him from behind… they fought over the gun and it went off," she said with a kind of empty look in her eyes.

"Damn it! We need more blood," Choi swore after removing another soaked cloth.

"Almost got it…" Zanetti mumbled and grabbed another clamp to twist around the edges. "This will give us some time to stitch it up and hope for the best," she continued and let her shoulders fall down with a sigh of relief.

"Stats are looking good and stable," April commented. The atmosphere had thickened all though they were one hostage less. Of course Natalie had disagreed with the choice landing on her, but little could she do to change their minds, especially Will's.

"How is he, Doc?" Caine asked with a tiny trace of worry, clearly he felt the remorse, but he didn't want to show it. Zanetti looked over her shoulder and sighed.

"He would be a hell of a lot better, if you hadn't pulled the trigger," she replied rather irritated and looked at all the blood she was standing in. Rhodes's blood, she remembered and shivered. The phone rang once again and Caine moved to the counter. Will leaned inconspicuously towards April on his side and whispered.

"Five cc's of brevital," he murmured and April's eyes met his in disbelief. She shook her head in denial. "Come on, April, it's our best shot to get out of here," he continued and she shook her head again.

"It's too dangerous," she replied in a furious whisper.

"She is right… it might not be the best option, but we have to ride it out," Choi joined in with a whisper of his own.

"Seriously?" Will asked and looked around on his colleagues.

"It could work," Zanetti weighed in, receiving surprised, but discreet glances from the people around her. "It will knock him out cold in just a couple of seconds," she defended.

"Thank you," Will said when she agreed with him.

"Imagine how many times he can pull the trigger in those seconds," Choi countered.

"Another problem entirely, how are you planning on getting close enough to inject it?" April asked, feisty but curious.

"Stop talking," Caine shouted and waved the gun at them when he motioned for Reese to answer the call.

"Do you have my money, Detective?" he asked. He couldn't stand still for more than a second at the time and his movements were erratic and sudden. Apparently the answer didn't satisfy him and he disconnected the call abruptly. Then he turned to look at Will with his face tilted. "Your brother is not making much progress, pretty boy," he said as he moved closer and glanced at the open wound on Rhodes.

"He can be a little bit difficult, I know… I could talk to him for you, if you want," Will offered with genuine innocence in his voice. At least he hoped, that was what it sounded like. Caine thought it through, weighing the pros and cons.

"Give him a unit of .9 saline and hopefully that should be enough," Zanetti said when she handed the suture kit to April and pulled the gloves of. Choi spent a few moments cleaning the stitches and dressing the wound. "It's far from the most favorable, but I'm sure he wouldn't mind," she continued and turned to Caine. "No thanks to you," she commented dryly, but Caine only smiled.

"Nice one, Doc, " he uttered and grabbed the phone. He threw it to Will, who caught it one handed. "On speaker. Anything I don't like, one of your friends is going to end up like him," Caine said and nodded towards Rhodes. Will swallowed and nodded, then he pressed the redial button.

" _Caine?_ " Jay asked hastily.

"Jay, it's me… it's Will," he only replied without moving his eyes from Caine.

" _Will, are you all right?_ " Jay asked intensively.

"Yeah, I'll live. Listen, if you have problems with the money then find Rhodes's sister, Anna Christy. She can live off her money for the next thirty years," Will explained and earned a surprised look from his colleagues.

" _All right, I'll look into it…_ " Jay responded hesitantly.

"Give it here," Caine mumbled and Will threw the phone back to him. "Clock's ticking away, you better hurry up for your brother's sake," Caine laughed and disconnected the call.

"What's that about his sister?" Hank asked as soon as the line clicked. Natalie looked up, confused.

"Rhodes's sister is called Claire, and she's working in the family business, the Dolan Rhodes Department Store. Will knows that," she said, puzzled. Hank, Mrs. Goodwin and Natalie discussed the opportunities for the money. Jay was squinting his eyes in uncertainty. He understood part of the sentence and the rest was still like a blank jigsaw puzzle until it dawned on him a few minutes later.

"That son of a gun!" Jay exclaimed with a wide smile and looked at his watch. Everybody looked at him, surprise and question in their eyes.

"What is it?" Hank asked the now glowing detective.

"Anna Christy was our neighbor when we grew up. She used to sneak in and out of our house at night, through the backdoor, when we distracted our parents in the living room," he explained and grabbed the blue prints of the ED, studying them hard. Erin joined him by his side, and having studied them earlier, she pointed out all the possible entrances for him.

"Where are you going with this?" Hank asked, not having moved. Jay grabbed a radio from the table and started making his way out of the tent.

"He just gave us a plan and a deadline… we'll sneak in through the back," Jay replied over his shoulder and then turned around to look at them again when Erin spoke.

"And the deadline?" She asked curiously.

"Thirty years… thirty minutes, three of them already gone," he responded and disappeared out of sight.

"How does he plan on sneaking in without being seen?" Natalie asked and looked around on the remainder of the intelligence unit only to receive uncertain shrugs.

"What are you doing?" April asked disapprovingly when Caine was at the door, checking the cuffs on Roman and Maggie.

"We'll be out in no time," Will whispered back and smiled. Choi and Zanetti were just as perplexed as April and Reese, not far from them.

"What's going on? What's this about Anna Christy?" Choi asked in a strained whisper.

"We have eighteen minutes to come up with a distraction. Any ideas?" he asked quietly and glanced at Caine. Whatever he was doing or saying it made Roman and Maggie tense up visibly and look down.

"We can knock something over?" Zanetti proposed halfheartedly. Choi looked down on Rhodes before him, thinking.

"We can fake another coding? Pretend he dies?" Choi suggested with a lump in his throat. Will looked at him, contemplating and then nodding slowly.

"That could work… we'll just pull out one of the wires, he can't tell the difference," April agreed and glanced at the heart monitor for a second.

"Great… there will be a signal, a loud noise or something. Ethan, you grab Sarah and hit the floor. The three of us will move Rhodes into treatment two, right behind us, all right?" he asked, speaking quietly and looking at the people in front of him. Ethan glanced at Reese and then nodded like Zanetti and April.

"So, coding, signal, hit the deck and take cover… that's it?" Zanetti asked, failing to see the connection.

"Yes… in nine minutes," Will said after he glanced at the nearby clock.

"What about Roman and Maggie?" April asked, voice now filled with worry.

"We can't warn them, so we'll have to trust Roman's training and instincts," Will said displeased. They fell silent, all of them stealing glances at the clock.

"Wait, we can't just fake the coding without faking compressions and using the defibrillator," Zanetti pointed out stiffly.

Four minutes. The high-pitched tune of the phone filled the room, making Reese jerk. Caine moved to the counter, grabbing the phone infuriated.

"We have to do it now," Will whispered.

"You have my money?" Caine asked just as the heart-monitor went haywire and screamed for attention.

"He's crashing," Will yelled and started the fake compressions. He had his back to Caine to limit his view. Caine, of course, moved closer, still with the phone in his hand. As if on cue, there was a loud bang from behind the nurses' station, Choi swan dived, gripped onto Reese's wrist and dragged he to the floor with him. Caine roared and raised his gun towards the source of the sound. Zanetti, April and Will heaved the bed backwards and ducked for cover. Then a collection of shots were fired in quick succession, drowned in each other.

"Clear!" someone yelled, hardly audible after the loud ringing in everybody's ears.

 _I hope you likes this chapter. Leave a review and you're the best! /K._


	5. Chapter 5

_Hiii and sorry for the late update. I hope you can forgive me! Read on and leave a review if you please :) I hope you like it._

 _"_ _Clear!" someone yelled, hardly audible after the loud ringing in everybody's ears._ Jay advanced with Atwater and Ruzek close behind him, guns raised and pointing at the still form of Caine. They disarmed him, weapons still trained on him, and Jay leaned down to check for a pulse.

"Anybody hurt?" Ruzek called out when they all realized it was over and panting due to the fast pumping adrenaline. Atwater moved to the door, where Roman and Maggie had dived for cover, to unlock their cuffs.

"Maggie, you all right?" he asked and help her up, she only nodded, a bit shocked.

"Hey, man, what about me?" Roman complained with a smile, trying to distance it all with a bit of fun, when reaching for Atwater's outstretched hand to pull him up.

"Sarah, are you good?" Choi asked. He was sure he would feel bad later, about tackling her to the floor. He had pinned her between himself and the nurses' station, shielding her body from Caine.

"Uhm, uh, yeah, I think so…" she replied when her eyes fell on Caine on the ground in front of them. He was covered in dark red blood from the six bullet holes in his chest, pale faced and not moving.

"Great timing, bro," Will said with a smile from the floor when Jay stepped through the door. He started chuckling of relief and leaned back on the floor for a minute while Jay hoisted up Zanetti. "Let's all agree on not doing any of this again…" he laughed exhausted.

"You asshole," April exclaimed at Will, happy and relieved, and punched him half-heartedly on the arm.

"Halstead brothers," Zanetti replied with an all-knowing look in her eyes when she helped up April, like it would explain all of the craziness.

"Hey, we did just save your asses," Will countered when Jay heaved him upright and pulled him into a bear-hug like it would be the last time they saw each other.

"How is he?" Maggie asked from the door and moved in between Zanetti and April to look at Rhodes.

"He'll be just fine, Dr. Zanetti did a great job," April replied and let her fingers slider over the scar on his left arm, the one he had got from the train wreck on his first day.

Five minutes later, they all spilled out of the main entrance. The collection of people outside weren't limited to the ones that cared about them. Natalie pushed past the barricade of police cars and officers and ran straight into Will, hugging him tightly, earning understanding glances from the people surrounding them. Maggie met Mrs. Goodwin halfway and they both turned to look at Rhodes, who was wheeled out by Ruzek, Jay and Will. Hank closed in on the two Halstead brothers, both of them beaming with relief.

"Anna Christy, huh?" he asked and crossed his arms with an amused grin.

"Yeah, it was a bit of a long shot…" Will admitted with a shrug.

"One night, when she sneaked out through the kitchen, she accidentally knocked a plate off the table," Jay explained, aware that he hadn't updated them on the whole story. It earned him big smiles and small chuckles from the people around them.

The following day everything was back to normal, except for the soup like atmosphere. The whole team had been ordered to take a day off, but of course they had all stopped by Rhodes's room when they had eaten, slept and changed. Charles, Will and Maggie had been there most of the night, camping in the uncomfortable chairs when Rhodes stirred and sighed, winced uncontrollably and groaned. Maggie was the first to rush to the bedside, squeezing his hand.

"Hey, sweetie, don't move too much or you'll pull your stitches," she whispered calmly.

"Stitches," he huffed and opened his eyes, looking around dazed and drunkenly. Once again he tried to move but fell back down. "Right… stitches…" he breathed out, remembering the events of the day before. It slowly came back to him when Charles and Will popped into his sight on the other side of the bed.

"Hey, man… glad you're all right," Will smiled. As much as he tried to dislike Rhodes, the more he actually saw a friend forming in him.

"Dr. Rhodes," Charles nodded and rested a hand on the younger man's shoulder. He looked to Maggie and made a motion with his head towards the door, telling her he would inform the others and left.

"Is Sarah all right?" Rhodes asked, eyes suddenly deep with worry as he remembered why he was shot. Maggie nodded and squeezed his hand once again.

"Not a scratch," she smiled and Rhodes could breathe out again. He closed his eyes for a few seconds, overwhelmed by the exhaustion. "We should let him rest," Maggie whispered and walked silently out of the door.

"Connor," Will prompted and padded his friend on the shin under the blanket. He opened his eyes and found Will looking at him. "The world needs good doctors, you ass," Will cited with a smile and earned a twitching in the corner of Rhodes's mouth.

"That's funny," he said dryly, but clearly amused by Will quoting him.

"We couldn't just let you die," Will chuckled and his face softened. "Get some rest. We'll check in on you later," he smiled and walked out.

"You missed all the action," Natalie laughed and reached out for the green jelly on the table next to the bed. "And Will saving the day," she continued when she tore of the lid and grabbed the plastic spoon.

"You didn't!" Rhodes exclaimed hoarsely and smiling, looking at the redhead on the other side of his bed. Will was smiling and holding up a hand modestly.

"He did!" Natalie continued and leaned back in the chair, resting her feet on the bed.

"I'd like to hear, how that happened," Rhodes mentioned before he broke out in a fit of coughing. The pain it sent to his side was massive and he instinctively pressed a hand to the sutures to protect it. Vaguely, he sensed Will pushing his shoulders into the bed and Natalie pressing a mask over his nose and mouth before he heaved in a greedy mouthful of oxygen. The inside of his chest was burning until the oxygen started to work and the coughing died out. He had coughed so hard, that his eyes were watering and his toes tingling. "Thanks," he rasped and swallowed hard when he closed his eyes for a second.

"Don't bother... you need to rest," Will replied and padded him on the shoulder.

"We'll be right outside, if you need anything," Natalie continued softly and was followed out by Will. Rhodes leaned deeper back into the pillows and closed his eyes to sleep. He saw a flicker of Reese with her back against Caine, but pushed it out of his mind and fell into an uneasy sleep.

"Dr. Rhodes?.. Should you be up and walking, already?" Reese asked when he stepped out of the room, dressed in a set of scrubs, looking scruffier than she had ever seen him. She was on her way back down to the ER and she followed him towards the elevators when he started walking.

"Medically speaking, no… but I'm going stir crazy in that room…" he mumbled, walking carefully and with a hand over the stitches in his side. "It's nice to see you, Reese," he continued and managed to give her a genuine smile, despite the slight pain.

"Uhm, uhh, likewise, Dr. Rhodes," she said and returned the smile, although more embarrassed. They reached the elevator and she pressed the down button. Silence filled the air around them while waiting for the elevator. "Thank you…" she started and glanced at his face nervously. "… for taking a bullet for me and saving my life," she croaked and turned slightly to look at him. Rhodes only shook his head faintly.

"Don't mention it… anyone would have done it," he brushed it off. "Besides, the ER wouldn't be the same without you, Sarah," he continued when the elevator pinged and the doors slid open. Reese didn't reply. They both stepped in and turned to face the door.

"You risked your life, Dr. Rhodes, for me… it means a lot," she finally said and stared at the door. Rhodes sighed and smiled to himself when the doors opened.

"I guess, someone is worth risking a life for," Rhodes chuckled and stepped out. Reese was left speechless for a few seconds and then rushed out the door before they slid closed once again.

"Maggie," Rhodes called when he approached the nurse's station. "Can you please let me out of here?" he almost begged and leaned over the counter with a tired smile. Maggie turned to him with a warm smile.

"Hell no, sweetie… you were shot three days ago, not to mention the collapsed lung, that still bugs you. You shouldn't even be walking yet," she scolded him with a hand on her hip.

"I figured… please, Maggie, it's bad enough to be here and not work, let alone lying in a bed all day…" he grumbled in response and sighed. "Come on," he begged and tilted his head. Maggie sighed in frustration and finally nodded.

"Two conditions," she demanded and held up two fingers. Rhodes grimaced but nodded.

"Anything," he quickly replied.

"First, you'll take a week off. Second, someone will take you home and keep an eye on you… it's not up for discussion, Dr. Rhodes. Take it or leave it," Maggie offered and looked at him expectantly. Rhodes sighed yet again and dropped his forehead to the table.

"All right, I'll take it… you drive a hard bargain, Nurse Lockwood," he said deflated but with a smile. Now he only had to go stir crazy at his own place. Maggie's smile turned devious when she spotted someone across his shoulder.

"Dr. Reese," she called and Rhodes turned around to see the med student look up from a file, question and a bit of embarrassment in her eyes as she stepped closer. "I have a special assignment for you," Maggie continued.

"Maggie," Rhodes tried to intervene, but his objection was brushed off, when Maggie continued to hand out the instructions on how to take care of Rhodes. Then she left to do her job, when the front doors slid open and a gurney was wheeled in. "Sorry about that, you don't have to…" Rhodes started but Reese cut him off.

"Don't mention it… anyone would have done it," she said, repeating what he had told her only a few minutes ago. They looked at each other for a moment until Rhodes turned and cleared his throat. "I'll go get ready," Reese mumbled and left him at the counter. She only had to change and bring a few medical supplies.

"Really, it's not necessary, I'm fine. You should go back to the hospital," Rhodes tried once again when he opened the door to his place.

"Yeah, Maggie told me you would say something like that. And I'm getting paid for this, so it doesn't bother me," Reese countered and closed the door behind her. She passed him and dropped her bag on the counter in the open kitchen while looking around. She already loved the high ceiling, big space, white walls and lots of light. "Looks like you are stuck with me, until she says otherwise," she continued and looked over her shoulder to give him a smile.

"I don't mind," Rhodes said and followed her. "I'm sorry for the mess…" he continued and let the rest of the sentence die out. He guessed being shot was a good quality excuse to not clean up for a few days. "Make yourself at home, bathroom is second on the left," he mentioned and dropped down in the couch. The drive home had been more exhausting than he had thought it would be. He sighed and put his feet on the coffee table, before closing his eyes. Reese looked around for a couple of minutes before she took a seat at the counter and found her headphones. She took a look at Rhodes on the couch and took pity on him, so she managed to straighten him out on the couch and take of his shoes before she draped a blanket over him and returned to her place at the counter.

 _Thanks for reading! /K._


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